Improvement in tape-measures



c. n. WARD. TAPE-MEASURES.

No. 194,317, Patented Aug.v21 ,1877.

N.PETERS, PHUTOLITHOGRAYHER, vWASHINGTON. D C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES D. WARD, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN TAPE-MEASURES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 194,317, `dated August21, 1877; application tiled t January '42, 1877.

'To "all 'whom it mayconcern:

Bei't known that I, CHARLES `DJWARD, of Jersey City, in the county ofHudson and State of New-Jersey, haveinvented a new and ImprovedMeasuring-Tape; l'and that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the same, reference b'einghad to the accompanyingdrawing, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, making part ofthis specification.

This invention is in the nature of an iniprovement in measuring tapes;vand the invention consists in a measuringtape for roadcutting orotherexcavations, divided into subdivisions which bear a given relationto the vertical depth of the road bed or cutting, the subdivisionsbeginning at a given relative distance from the end of the tape, so thatby the application of a measuring-tape so divided, the determination ofthe point for the commencement ofthe slope-cutting, and the location ofthe stakes to govern this feature is at once ascertained without thenecessity of calculation.

In the accompanying' sheet of drawings, Figure l represents mymeasuringtape. Fig. 2 shows the ordinary footsubdivisions on theopposite side of the tape, and Fig.3 a diagram representing across-section of road-cutting, and showing the application of the tape.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in both figures.

1n laying out a cutting for railroads and other purposes, of sayeighteen feet width of road-bed, it is customary to first indicate thecenter of the road-bed by a stake, as at Gr, Fig. 3, the width of theroad-bed being, of course, just nine feet on each side of this stake.Now, since the level of the road-bed is designed to be below the levelof the natural surface of l the ground, it is, of course, important toknow the extent and inchnation of theinclined sides ofthe cutting, andwe will suppose that the best angle of inclination to prevent slides andother inconveniences is one and a half feet of slope to every foot ofperpendicular, and it is customary with engineers in laying outcrosssections of cutting to arrive at this degree of slope bymultiplying the vertical distance from the bed of the road to thesurface of the ground by one and a half, which gives the ascertained, itbecomes necessary to add half the width ofthe road-bed, (which, in thecase supposed, would be nine feet,) in order to ar rive at the distancefrom the center of the road-bed to the extreme point of thel cutting atwhich the slope begins; so that, in a cut- `ting of any extent, yas inlaying outl rail or connnon roads, a constant repetitionlof thecalculation of `multiplying the vertical distance into one and a halfthe degree of slope, and

adding half the width of the road-bed, becomes necessary, and, ofcourse, errro'rs are liable to occur in this repeated calculation, whichtend to interfere with the correctness of the work, and add to theexpenses.

By my invention, however, no calculation is necessary, and therefore thework is laid out with greater accuracy and much more expeditiously. Tothat end I construct a measuring-tape with subdivisions bearing a givenrelation to the vertical depthof cutting, which in the case supposedwould be one foot and six inches to every foot of vertical depth, thesesubdivisions commencing at a given relative point from the end of thetape, or at a point equal to one-half the width of the roadbed, (whichin the case supposed would be nine feet from the end of the tape).

Now, my tape being constructed as above, it is applied as follows:Referring' to Fig. 3, A represents the natural surface ofthe ground,and-B the surface of the roadbed it is desired to construct. The levelhaving determined the depth at which it is necessary to place thesurface of the road-bed, this vertical distance, which is represented bythe line B C, Fig. 3, is known. To ascertain the point at which thecutting is to commence, it is simply n ecessary to apply the tape at thepoint where its subdivisions commence, to a stake, C, indicating theouter edge ot one side of the road-bed, and extend the tape along thesurface of the ground a distance equal to. one subdivision .(of one footand six inches each in the case supposed) for every single foot ofperpendicular depth of road-bed, when the point from which to commencethe cutting o1' slope is at once ascertained and fixed bya stake orotherwise without the aid of any calculation whatsoever. As an example,if the vertical line B C, Fig. 3, is siX feet in length, (thesubdivisions of the tape being one foot and six inches,) then thedistance to the commencement ot' the slope-cutting would necessitateextending the tape six subdivisions from the stake at C, in-

dicating the outer edge at one side of the road-bed.

4 The position ofthe stake marking the outer edge of the road-bed beforereferred to is promptly ascertained by causing the subdivisions on thetape-measure to commence at a i distance` from the end of the tape equalto onehalt' the'width of the road, so that by simply applying the end ofthetape to the stake marking the center ot the road and eX- y tendingit, the tape will give the position for zero-point or commencement ofthe subdivisions ot' the tape farther from or nearer to its end, it maybe used for wider or narrower formation widths, and by using a dierentunit in graduating the tape it may be adapted to a different angle ofslope, and there may be different graduations for two different slopeson opposite sides of the same tapewith differently-shaped ii'gures andof different colors, however, to preven t confusion-or the Ordin arydivision of feet and inches may occupy one side of the tape.

Having now described my invention, what 1 claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

A measuring-tape or device for road-cutting or other excavations,provided with subdivisions commencing at a given relative distance fromthe end of the tape, and which bear a given relation to theperpendicular depth of the cutting, whereby the extent or slope oi' thecutting is determined by measurement alone, and without calculation,substantially as described.

CHARLES D. WARD.

Witnesses:

M. W. ROBINSON, M. D., C. R. KINsLEY.

